Contents

Plot

Reuben Feffer (Ben
Stiller) is an insurance underwriter who, since
his job involves analyzing risk for insurance purposes, likes
living life in complete safety and free from any unnecessary risk.
As the film opens, he is celebrating his wedding to Lisa Kramer (Debra Messing), but
promptly catches her having sex on their honeymoon with Claude (Hank Azaria), a French scuba
instructor. After he returns he attempts to begin piecing his life
back together. One night at the behest of his best friend - and
fallen former teen actor - Sandy (Phillip Seymour Hoffman), he goes to an art
gallery. There he runs into an extroverted former classmate named
Polly Prince (Jennifer Aniston). The reunion is cut
short, however, due to Sandy having sharted (a contraction of the
words "shit" and "fart" - as Sandy explains to Reuben, not knowing
what sharted means: "I just farted and shit came out...") and
wanting to go home.

Reuben decides to ask Polly out which in turn aggravates Sandy,
who states that Polly is not as how she was when they were in
junior high. At the end of the night he calls Polly but hangs up,
she calls back and before he can stop it, his answering machine
announces his name. Reuben then detours near Polly's apartment in
time to see her walking in. He quickly deflects her inquiry as to
whether or not he had hung up on her the previous night, to which
he replies that "the phone lines must've gotten crossed or
something". Despite this he manages to give her a business card and
they make tentative plans to get together.

After Polly rearranges their plans a few times they finally
manage to meet up at a Moroccan-style restaurant.
Unfortunately for him, Reuben begins to suffer a bout of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (despite Sandy
having reminded him of this prior to the date) and begins
perspiring heavily. Unable to use the restaurant's bathroom (as it
was occupied the entire time), he finally attempts to use Polly's
bathroom. He runs into yet another problem here, this time finding
that there's no toilet paper. He grabs a towel off of the rack but
in the process blocks the toilet. He then tries to use Polly's new
- and expensive - loofah in an effort to unplug the toilet. This
attempt fails miserably and ends with Reuben's humiliation at Polly
catching him in the act (after the toilet has overflowed onto the
floor). To compound things, she reveals to him that the towel that
he had used was in fact a hand-embroidered gift from her
grandmother. Despite all of this Polly agrees to another date, this
time at an Indian restaurant where they meet up with Reuben's
parents. While at dinner Reuben's mother tells Polly of his failed
marriage to Lisa and how she cheated on him during their honeymoon.
Polly, touched by this, amends that she will help him to get over
Lisa.

Reuben and Polly begin dating, with her introducing him to
activities he once wrote off as "too risky" (such as salsa
dancing). Meanwhile at work Reuben is attempting to assess Leland
Van Lew, an Australian industrialist who enjoys engaging in life
threatening stunts (such as swimming with great white sharks) thus
also making it harder for anyone to insure him. Sandy is also busy
making a documentary about his "life as a star" as well as
preparing to perform in a stage revival of Jesus
Christ Superstar cast as Judas and convinced that he is the true
star of the production.

Reuben runs into a conundrum when he finds himself torn between
the free-spirited Polly and Lisa, who has returned and has stated
her wish to reconcile their relationship. To solve this issue he
enters Polly and Lisa into the Risk Master, a computer insurance
program which measures risk in percentages when entered with
people's advantages and disadvantages. The computer tells him that,
despite his numerous blunders with her, that Polly is the best
choice for him due in part to her lifestyle.

Lew invites Reuben to join him on a boating trip and he in turn
decides to bring Polly along. During a storm Polly accidentally
knocks into Reuben's computer, turning on the Risk Master. She sees
he listed all her flaws and has compared her against those of Lisa.
In a fit of anger she confronts him with the information, accusing
him of using her as a fling while still remaining legally married
to Lisa. She punctuates this point by stating that her own father
had actually had two separate wives and families, revealing her
reason for being afraid of commitment. Reuben attempts to talk her
down, but to no avail. She breaks things off with him then and
there by telling him that he'd be better off going back to
Lisa.

Reuben moves into his new house and talks to Lisa, who wants to
see him. While at Sandy's play together they run into a friend of
Polly's, who in turn reveals to him that she's leaving town, but he
doesn't know why. As they sit down to watch the play Reuben gets a
call from his boss Stan to give a final evaluation on Lew's case.
As the play's beginning Sandy announces to the audience that he
will be playing the lead of the play as well as his own part,
prompting the lead actor to pick a fist fight with him right then
and there on the stage. Afterwards Reuben's dad breaks his silence
from the start of the film and tells Sandy to let go of his past,
that life is about enjoying the ride. This has the dual effect of
inspiring Reuben, who then tells Lisa he won't take her back
because she's a "heartless bitch" for cheating on him. Reuben then
convinces Sandy to stand in for him at the final meeting regarding
Lew's case so that he can rush to catch Polly before she leaves
town. He sees her leaving but is unable to keep up. He wanders back
to her apartment where he finds her pet ferret Rodolfo, whose leash
had gotten caught in the door. Soon after Polly comes back around
the corner in time to see Reuben with Rodolfo. He apologizes to her
and tells her that she was risky but worth it. Polly is not yet
convinced of his epiphany, so Reuben then buys some nuts from a
vendor and drops them on the ground before eating them, proving to
her that he's capable of taking risks. He also tells her that if
she leaves, she'll never know what they could have had together.
The scene then cuts to Reuben and Polly on the beach where he and
Lisa had had their honeymoon at the beginning of the film and where
he again encounters Claude. Instead of being angry this time Reuben
thanks Claude, and then heads into the water with Polly.

Critical
reception

Many critics disliked Along Came Polly, saying the
chemistry was forced and scenes formulaic. The movie earned a
"Rotten" 27 percent on Rotten Tomatoes.[1] The
film was a financial success, making $170,360,435 in the worldwide
box office.[2]

Sandy Lyle: I tried to fart and a little shit
came out. I just sharted. Now let's go.

Reuben Feffer: You're the most disgusting
person I've ever met in my life.

Reuben Feffer: You're on the non-plan
plan!

Polly Prince: I am NOT on the non-plan
plan!

Polly Prince: I'm not going to marry you
Reuben.

Reuben Feffer: I don't want to get married. I
just want to take you to dinner...sometime this week.

Polly Prince: Can I pick the place?

Claude: Oh my stars and strips, Leuben! I
cannot believe it is you!

Polly Prince: This is Polly.

Claude: Hi Polly. I am Claude.

Irving Feffer: It's not about what happened in
the past, or what you think might happen in the future. It's about
the ride, for Christ's sake. There is no point in going through all
this crap, if you are not going to enjoy the ride. And you know
what... when you least expect, something great might come along.
Something better then you even planned for.

Stan Indursky: Good things.

Reuben Feffer: So whose party is this
again?

Sandy Lyle: It's an art opening for this Dutch
guy, Jost. His art sucks, but he used to sell me really good pot.
[pause]

Sandy Lyle: Oh, man, I'm so friggin'
horny.

Claude: It's like zee story of zee
heeppo.

Reuben Feffer: I'm not familiar with that
story.

Claude: Zee heeppopotamoose, he is not born
saying, "Cool beans. I am a heeppo." No way, Joesay. So he try to
paint zee stripe on him to be like zee zebra, but he fool no one.
Then he try to put zee spot on zee skin to be like the leopard, but
everyboody know he is a heeppo. So, at certain point, he look
himself in zee mirror and he just say, "Hey. I am a heeppopotamoose
and zere is nothing I can do about it." As soon as he accepts zis,
he live life happy. Happy as a heeppo. You understand zis,
Luban?